Regulation of the health and disability system

Regulation of the health and disability system is required to ensure that health service providers and products are safe, and that providers operate in an ethically acceptable way.

Regulation of the health system helps provide assurance to New Zealanders that they can trust the services they use.

The Ministry has a key role in administering, implementing and enforcing legislation and regulations. Through this work it seeks to improve and manage sector regulation so that patient health is protected while minimising compliance costs.

This section provides information about the Ministry's regulatory work in relation to health service providers and products.

In this section

Guidance for health professionals on the Act and Regulations, including certification for a cause of death or cremation, referring a death to the coroner, WHO guidelines and cause-of-death statistics.
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Certifying health care services ensures they provide safe and reasonable levels of service. This section provides information on certification for service providers, auditing agencies, and district health boards.
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Health practitioners are regulated to protect the public where there is a risk of harm from professional practice. This section provides information about regulated professions, restricted activities, quality assurance, and how to register a new profession.
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The Human Tissue Act regulates how human tissue is collected and used. This section provides guidance on the consent process, the Standard for non-therapeutic use, and use for research purposes.
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A health care worker may need to check a child at school or early childcare centre for a particular medical condition. Some health workers are authorised to do this without consent when necessary.
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Medicines control in New Zealand includes overseeing the distribution chain of medicines and controlled drugs. This section provides information about pharmacy licensing and drug abuse containment activities.
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